September 30, 2008
For more information, contact:
Nemertes Research Inc.
Phone: 888-241-2685
research@nemertes.com
Enterprise Need for IP-Telephony Professional Services Increases Resellers Profits
65% of IT executives use professional or managed IPT services
NEW YORK, NY – September 30, 2008 –IP-telephony professional services are top of mind for IT executives, according to Nemertes Unified Communications and Collaboration benchmark. More than 65% of IT executives indicate their organizations use IP-telephony professional or managed services, and about 75% say they depend on a reseller to provide them, including value-added resellers (VARs), systems integrators and carriers.
Organizations understand the importance of shopping around when it comes to professional services. Resellers often use service offerings to differentiate themselves, highlighting specialty certifications or marketing themselves as a solution provider, offering a full breadth of services, ranging from baseline assessment to ongoing VOIP management.
The large interest in services can greatly boost a reseller’s bottom line. Profits from selling IP-telephony systems and services vary greatly, ranging between 12% - 40% on hardware and software, and as much as 90% for professional services. “Comparing hardware profit margins play a role in a VARs’ decision to sell a particular vendor’s products,” says Katherine Trost, research analyst with Nemertes Research. “But VARs should also view IP-telephony as an extended services opportunity.”
Resellers often find it challenging to determine which vendor’s products to offer. Nemertes found that 61.5% of IP-Telephony resellers focus on a single vendor’s solution. Expensive and time-consuming certifications can limit the number of product lines VARs, train their technicians on, especially the smaller, regional partners. Resellers also find it easier to manage the relationship when dealing with just one provider.
“The business of reselling IP-telephony is not a “one-vendor-fits-all” solution. Each reseller should assess not only the hardware and services profitability, but also the vendor support, certifications, and partner assistance they offer,” says Trost.
About the Benchmark
This study is part of an eight-volume benchmark titled, “Unified Communication and Collaboration.” These reports examine several key areas including organizational strategies, UC applications, Web 2.0 and collaboration technology, mobility, voice over IP and video over IP.
About Nemertes Research
Nemertes Research is a research-advisory firm that specializes in analyzing and quantifying the business value of emerging technologies. You can learn more about Nemertes Research at our Website, www.nemertes.com.